Sam

LaPorta

LaPorta had a relatively quiet night by his lofty standards, ranking fourth on the team in targets and failing to find the end zone. Even so, LaPorta remains an integral part of an aggressive offense and should find better fantasy performances moving forward. Unfortunately for his fantasy managers, he was unable to corral his lone end zone target against the Rams, something that could have helped to inflate his numbers. Up next is a solid matchup through the air against the Buccaneers in Week 2.

LaPorta finished his rookie season as the TE3 in PPR points per game while playing in all 17 regular season contests. He even fought through a hyperextended knee and associated bone bruise entering the postseason after a low hit in the team’s final game of the regular season, adding a “tough guy” moniker to one of the game’s ascending talents at the tight end position. LaPorta enters his second year as an integral part of the future plans in Detroit, a team that should return the bulk of their starting offense in the new league year.

“Really impressive,” Goff said of Ertz’s understanding of Detroit’s offensive scheme. “Not that you didn’t expect that from a guy like him who’s been around for so long. I’ve known him here and there throughout the years, and just hearing about how smart he is and how well he can pick up things, he’s done it really well this week. It’s been good.” Ertz, 33, signed with the Lions this week after playing seven games for the Cardinals before requesting his release. Lions head coach Dan Campbell said Wednesday that he wasn’t sure if Ertz would be active for the NFC title game against the 49ers.

There was never really any doubt over whether LaPorta would play in Sunday’s game against the 49ers. The rookie tight end has battled through the same knee injury in each of the Lion’s first two playoff games and will do so again on Sunday. Despite his injury, LaPorta has caught 12 passes for 79 yards and one touchdown this postseason and should be in good shape come Sunday night.

LaPorta was held out of Wednesday’s walkthrough but managed to log a limited session on Thursday. He’s played through his knee injury suffered in Week 18’s win over the Vikings in each of the Lions’ last two playoff games and shouldn’t be considered at risk of missing Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the 49ers. He’ll likely log another practice on Friday to close out the week and be ready for Sunday barring any setbacks.

Wednesday’s practice was a walkthrough, so LaPorta’s status is an estimation from the team. Given that he has played through the knee issue in back-to-back weeks, there’s no shot he misses Detroit’s NFC Championship game against San Francisco. LaPorta wasn’t limited by the knee issue last week, catching 9-of-11 targets for 65 yards. He will continue to be Jared Goff’s second-favorite target behind Amon-Ra St. Brown when the Lions suit up on Sunday.

“Right now he just got here, I know he’s in shape,” Campbell said of Ertz, who signed with the team Monday. “I talked to him the other day. He understands we’re gonna gauge this and see where we’re at.” If Ertz suits up against the Niners, he’ll likely have a limited snap count and play well behind standout rookie TE Sam LaPorta. Ertz could be ramped up for more usage in the Super Bowl if Detroit pulls the upset against the 49ers. Ertz, 33, had 27 catches for 187 yards and a touchdown in seven games for the Cardinals this season.

A banged-up LaPorta, who injured his knee in Week 18 against the Vikings, played more against the Bucs than he did last week against the Rams and was second on the team in targets. LaPorta will get another week to heal his bulky knee before taking on a Niners defense that has been tough against tight ends all season.

LaPorta opened the week with a full practice but was downgraded to limited sessions on Thursday and Friday. The light days were workload management for the record-setting rookie. Though still banged up, LaPorta is a strong fantasy option for DFS players setting lineups on Sunday. Inactive for the Lions are LB James Houston, WR Kalif Raymond, S Tracy Walker, LB Charles Harris, DT Brodric Martin, CB Steven Gilmore, and QB Hendon Hooker.

LaPorta was a full participant in practice on Wednesday but was downgraded to limited sessions on Thursday and Friday. Given that he played in the Wild Card Round and ran a route on 80 percent of his team’s dropbacks, we will assume LaPorta is suiting up this weekend unless a report stating otherwise hits the airwaves. LaPorta caught three passes for 14 yards and a touchdown last week. He will sit in the top half of the tight end fantasy options for the Divisional Round.